Sony EyePad Patent Filed

Love ‘em or hate ‘em, patents have proved to be a powerful bargaining chip among companies in recent times, and the more patents a company owns, the better. Sony was seen to have filed for a patent recently for what they described as an “Input device, system and method,” which is otherwise known as the “EyePad”. Yes sir, what sounds pretty ordinary in its description actually has far more than meets the eye, where the flat device that resembles a tablet is said to come with six-axis motion sensors, joystick controls, and illuminated edges which “provide a similar functionality to that of the illuminated ball of the Playstation Move.”

Hmmm, deciphering that would mean it ought to function as a physical surface with touch sensor capability in addition to featuring a motion tracking device to work alongside the EyeToy. Not only that, the patent application also comes with its fair share of references to a pair of stereoscopic cameras “of a type typically found in mobile phones and other compact devices”, where these are located at each end of the touch surface so that one can use the EyePad to create “depth maps”. Will this arrive as a peripheral for the PS3, or perhaps the much anticipated PS4? Time will tell.